If GOP wants to win, highlight stealth taxes

Nov. 26, 2012

A Democrat president just won re-election by promising to preserve the Republican “middle-class tax cut” that Democrats swore was “only for the rich” during his 2008 campaign.

President Barack Obama divided and conquered by convincing average taxpayers that their own Bush tax cut can be paid for by eliminating the rich guys’ Bush tax cut.

However, the revenue from the planned top-bracket tax increase is less than one-tenth of what will be needed to balance the budget.

This means that, far from “paying down the debt,” as Obama advertised, the national debt will grow enormously, in the next four years, according to his own budget projections.

The old Democrat formula of “tax, tax; spend, spend; elect, elect” has been updated. It is now, “borrow, borrow; spend, spend; elect, elect.” This robs the GOP of tax cuts to offer voters.

Historically, Republicans have bought votes with tax cuts. Democrats have bought votes with government spending.

Nearly half of households now pay no federal income tax. Furthermore, taxes can only be cut to zero, while federal borrowing and spending are unlimited. So Democrats can easily out-bribe Republicans.

Republicans can overcome this disadvantage by offering not tax rate cuts, but a halt to the growing costs imposed on everyone by runaway deficit spending: inflation, loan scarcity, slow job growth and ultimately — as in Europe — cuts to government services themselves.

Making Americans aware that we are all paying these stealth taxes to fund bigger government is the key to a 21st century GOP majority.